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  3. Moving to Work - General Information

Moving to Work General Information

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Moving to Work (MTW) Policy Guidance

The following policy guidance is provided to agencies participating in the MTW Demonstration to supplement the information contained in the MTW Agreement.

Compliance Guidance

Planning, Reporting and Evaluation

Funding Issues Guidance

  • MTW Repositioning FAQ - Provides guidance to non-MTW PHA(s) that are transferring their public housing program funds to legacy and expansion MTW PHA(s), including whether the MTW PHA may use funding flexibility with the non-MTW PHA’s public housing program funds (including reserves).
  • MTW Special Purpose Voucher FAQ (updated October 2023)

Background

When the MTW Demonstration began, HUD envisioned an evaluation design and monitoring methodology that relied heavily on Form HUD-50058 data from HUD's Multifamily Tenant Characteristics System (MTCS), the precursor to the PIC Form-50058 module. However, because the data from MTW sites with alternate rent structures was not compatible with the field edits in MTCS, the Department instructed MTW sites to suspend transmitting data to MTCS in 1999. Realizing the need for a separate module to which MTW sites could transmit their data, the Department released the PIC MTW module in 2005. All MTW sites with alternate rent structures submit select fields from the Form HUD-50058 MTW to the MTW module. Data is uploaded to the MTW module via either an Excel template or a .CSV file. Following the December 2006 update to the module, the Department required MTW sites to successfully transmit records for 85 percent of their MTW households to the MTW module by April 15, 2007. MTW sites without alternate rent structures continue to report their MTW households to the Form-50058 module.

Current Initiative

MTW sites with alternate rent structures have been successfully submitting data to the MTW module since early 2007. MTW sites benefit from submitting data to the MTW module because by submitting data they gain access to Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) System data for their MTW households. The EIV system provides PHAs with readily available third-party income verification data free of charge. Non-MTW PHAs currently use this resource and find it is a helpful tool to verify tenant supplied income data at the time of annual and interim reexaminations. Submitting data also benefits the Department because the data allows the Department to evaluate the MTW Demonstration and provide information to Congress and other interested parties on the program. The Department will make an MTW Delinquency Report available as part of the November 2007 PIC release. This report will allow MTW sites and the Department to monitor MTW reporting rates monthly.

Resources

The following materials will assist MTW PHAs is transmitting data to the MTW Module.

  • Form HUD-50058 MTW
  • If an MTW agency has submitted household level data on the HUD-50058 and is now applying MTW flexibilities to the household, they can request that the data moved to the HUD-50058 MTW in the MTW module in IMS/PIC. Moving the data will prevent error messages possibly being received when certain flexibilities do not conform to the standard validations used for the HUD-50058. MTW agencies should contact their local field office PIC Coach who will be able let them know what information is required to be submitted and then once that information is submitted will be able to forward the request to the proper place. This is only applicable to the initial MTW agencies that submit the HUD-50058 MTW in IMS/PIC. It is not applicable to MTW Expansion agencies.
    • The previously posted guidance that was dated 2011 that discussed converting HUD-50058 records to the MTW module in IMS/PIC was only for the initial move to the MTW module and, therefore, has been removed.

MTW PIC Forms and Tools

MTW Tenant Reporting

Data collected on MTW Tenant Reporting provides HUD with a picture of the people who participate in subsidized housing programs. PHAs collect and electronically submit information in the MTW format to HUD through the IMS/PIC.

Moving-to-Work (MTW) Form HUD-50058

MTW reporting formats should only be used by PHAs participating in the Moving to Work demonstration. HUD defines MTW families as those that participate in any MTW program component. If you are unsure, consult your local field office MTW Coordinator.

Technical Documentation and Tools

Demolition and Disposition

  • Although MTW Demonstration sites are exempt from many of the regulations under the Housing Act of 1937 (1937 Act), MTW sites are not exempt from Section 18 that authorizes the demolition and disposition of public housing. For further guidance on demolition and disposition of public housing, MTW Demonstration sites are encouraged to review the demolition/disposition webpage as well as the regulations at 24 CFR 970, detailing the administrative steps required to perform demolition/disposition activity in accordance with the 1937 Act.

Transition From MTW Demonstration

Transitioning out of the MTW Demonstration requires careful planning, coordination of efforts, and consideration of a number of different administrative functions. Upon termination or expiration of the Standard MTW Agreement or MTW Annual Contributions Contract (ACC) Amendment, public housing agencies (PHAs) participating in MTW must begin the transition process with sufficient time to comply with current HUD regulations and minimize impacts on households.

This transition guidance document linked below lays out the circumstances that would necessitate an MTW PHA to transition out of the MTW program. It also provides information on establishing and submitting an MTW Transition Plan, which includes timing of ending MTW activities and administrative practices. Next, it discusses the process to request to extend portions of MTW flexibility after the termination or expiration date of MTW designation. Finally, it discusses the transition back to non-MTW funding calculations and systems.

Download the full transition guidance here.

 

MTW Statutory Compliance

Throughout participation in the Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration program, all MTW agencies must continue to meet five statutory requirements established under the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-134, 110 Stat 1321). All MTW agencies, whether governed by the MTW Agreement or the MTW Operations Notice, are required to maintain compliance with the five statutory requirements of the MTW Demonstration.

Learn more about the five statutory MTW requirements and HUD’s evaluation of compliance below.

MTW Statutory Requirements

Very Low-Income Requirement

MTW agencies must ensure that at least 75 percent of the families assisted are very low-income families, in each fiscal year, as defined in Section 3(b)(2) of the 1937 Act.

The Department utilizes various internal and external data sources to obtain public housing (PH), Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) and local, non-traditional (LNT) program data to assess each MTW agency’s compliance with this statutory requirement. Initial certification data recorded in HUD’s IMS/PIC system, compromised only of new admissions to the programs in the given fiscal year, is used for PH and HCV programs.

An MTW agency’s portfolio is weighted with respect to the number of households being served by each housing program type (i.e., public housing, HCV, and local, non-traditional). While the verification approach for this statutory requirement is conducted based on initial certification in the MTW agency’s given fiscal year, MTW agencies must continue to assist low-income families, which MTW agencies must monitor through the reexamination process.

Statutory compliance will be determined by the Department annually. At minimum, the agency must be assisting 75 percent of families at or below very low income (VLI) at time of program entry or the agency will receive a compliance determination of non-compliant.

Reasonable Rent Policy Requirement

MTW agencies must establish a reasonable rent policy which shall be designed to encourage employment and self-sufficiency by participating families, consistent with the purpose of this Demonstration, such as by excluding some or all of a family’s earned income for purposes of determining rent.

MTW agencies are required to establish a reasonable rent policy that encourages self-sufficiency, which HUD defines as any change from the regulations in how rent is calculated for a household. Upon designation into the MTW Demonstration, MTW agencies are to submit their planned policy to implement a reasonable rent policy. The Department will work collaboratively with each MTW agency to ensure reasonable rent policy submissions are in accordance with MTW objectives and within an agency’s authority under the available program waivers.

Substantially the Same Requirement

MTW agencies must continue to assist substantially the same total number of eligible low-income families as would have been served absent the MTW Demonstration.

MTW agencies are required to serve substantially the same number of families as would have been served had they not participated in the MTW Demonstration (also referred to as the “Substantially the Same Requirement” or “STS Requirement”). MTW agencies under an MTW Agreement are subject to the STS Requirement methodology outlined in Notice PIH 2013-02 which compares the number of actual families served to an adjusted “baseline” estimate of the number of families that would have been served absent the MTW designation.

MTW agencies designated under the 2016 MTW Expansion Statute are subject to the STS Requirement methodology outlined in Appendix III of the MTW Operations Notice.

In order to accurately monitor the extent to which MTW agencies are meeting the STS Requirement, HUD conducts an analysis of the number of families being served annually by each MTW agency compared to established baselines of families served prior to an agency’s MTW designation. HUD’s annual compliance determination will confirm whether an MTW agency fulfills the STS Requirement in accordance with its applicable methodology.

Comparable Mix Requirement

MTW agencies must maintain a comparable mix of families (by family size) as would have been provided had the amounts not been used under the Demonstration.

In order to assess compliance with this statutory requirement, the Department requires that agencies establish baseline percentages, by family size, to which the agency is measured by for the remainder of participation. These baseline percentages are established using agency provided data in HUD systems (i.e., IMS/PIC, VMS) and the MTW Form 50900 or MTW Supplement to the Annual PHA Plan, as applicable. Variations above what the Department deems an acceptable level are required to provide a justification(s) or an explanation(s).

Housing Quality Standards (HQS) Requirement

MTW agencies must ensure that housing assisted under the Demonstration meets HQS established or approved by the Secretary.

In order to ensure that MTW agencies meet the housing quality standards requirement, HUD will verify compliance for each housing program type as follows:

  • HCV - Program regulations at 24 CFR Part 982 set forth basic HQS for housing assisted under the HCV program. These housing quality standards, or its successor regulations, are the standards used to determine if the agency is fulfilling its responsibilities to ensure owners are maintaining the units is accordance with HQS in the evaluation of an agency. MTW agencies with an HCV program must certify in the Form 50900 or MTW Supplement to the Annual PHA Plan, as applicable, that they have fulfilled their responsibilities to comply with and ensure enforcement of HQS under this requirement.
  • PH - HUD will verify this requirement through its review of public housing physical inspection scores, weighted by development. Overall scores falling below 60 percent will be identified as non-compliant with the statutory objective.
  • LNT – Agencies must certify that LNT units meet HQS performance requirements (as provided in 24 CFR 982.401), both at commencement of occupancy and throughout the term of the time restriction on affordable units, in the Annual MTW Report, as per Notice PIH 2011-45 or successor notice.
 

Moving to Work Standard Agreement

Overview of the MTW Standard Agreement

When MTW began, each MTW PHA had a unique Agreement with HUD regarding the conditions of its participation and exceptions to statute and regulation. These original agreements also had terms of varying lengths; some ran for as little as five years and others as long as seven years. Amendments to extend the term or add additional exceptions and flexibilities were common, which over time lowered HUD's quality and level of service to MTW agencies. In 2006 HUD made the decision to develop a new MTW agreement that expanded and standardized the authorizations granted to MTW agencies. The MTW Standard Agreement incorporates many elements of HUD's original MTW Agreements with the participating agencies, but contains more rigorous and consistent reporting requirements. The initial term of the Standard Agreement was to the end of each agency's 2018 fiscal year. In 2016 and at the direction of Congress, HUD extended the term of the Standard Agreement to the end of each agency’s 2028 fiscal year. In 2024, again at the direction of Congress, HUD extended the term of the Standard Agreement to the end of each agency's 2038 fiscal year.

Under the Standard Agreement, an MTW agency must include any new MTW initiatives in an Annual MTW Plan and have the Plan approved by HUD prior to implementation. Agencies provide information on the items listed in Attachment B of the MTW Agreement in their Plan, which includes evaluation metrics, authorizations and descriptions of the anticipated impact.

Components of the MTW Standard Agreement

The Standard Agreement and Attachments B and C are the same for all MTW PHAs. Attachments A and D are tailored to each individual agency.

Standard Agreement Outlines the general terms of participation in MTW.
Attachment ACalculation of SubsidiesHUD works with each agency to provide formulas for determining the amounts of operating subsidy, capital funds, and Housing Choice Voucher Program assistance that each agency receives.
Attachment B
(HUD-50900)		Elements for the Annual MTW Plan and Annual MTW ReportLists the required elements for the Annual MTW Plan and Annual MTW Report, which are the same for all MTW Agencies.
Attachment CStatement of AuthorizationsLists each specific section of the 1937 Act and/or its implementing regulations that an MTW PHA can waive as part of its MTW flexibility.
Attachment DLegacy and Community-Specific AuthorizationsThis section is optional and unique for those agencies that have them. HUD works with each MTW agency to develop its Attachment D to serve the interests of all parties. For many agencies, it incorporates parts of their original Agreements or other authorizations unique to the PHA.